Women's Health Watch

Healthy Living Prolongs Life

Harvard University researchers found
that women with a healthy lifestyle greatly
reduce their risk of dying from any
cause, particularly from heart disease
and cancer.

For the study, the researchers looked
at data on 77,782 women who participated
in the Brigham and Women's Hospitalbased
Nurses Health Study. Beginning in
1980, the participants responded to yearly
questions about lifestyle and health.
The researchers estimated that the overall
risk of death was reduced by 55% for
women who never smoked, ate a healthy
diet, maintained a healthy weight, and
remained physically active. Furthermore,
these women had a 44% lower risk of
dying from cancer and a 72% lower risk
of dying from heart disease.

The researchers also calculated individual
risk factors. They found that
28% of the deaths were attributed to
smoking, 14% from being overweight,
17% due to the lack of physical activity,
and 13% to not eating healthy. Of the
nonsmokers, 22% of deaths were due
to being overweight. The findings were
published in the September 17, 2008,
online edition of the British Medical
Journal.

Female Incontinence Is Common

Pelvic floor disorders, such as urinary incontinence, fecal
incontinence, or pelvic organ prolapse, are especially common
in women in the United States. The findings are based
on a review of data from nearly 2000 women over the age of
20 who had participated in the 2005-2006 National Health and
Nutrition Examination Survey.

The participants were interviewed at home and were given
a physical in a mobile examination center. The researchers
found that 23.7% of women experienced at least one pelvic
floor disorder. Nearly 16% of women reported urinary incontinence,
9% experienced fecal incontinence, and 2.9% reported
pelvic organ prolapse. The findings were recently published in
the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Artery Disease,
Secondhand Smoke
Linked, Study Says

A study of Chinese women found that secondhand smoke
exposure is a key risk factor for peripheral arterial disease.
The study included 1209 women age 60 and older who never
smoked. Reporting in the September 22, 2008, online issue of
Circulation, the researchers learned that 477 patients were
exposed to secondhand smoke at home or in the workplace
for at least 2 years during the previous decade. The findings
indicated that secondhand smoking raised the risk of peripheral
arterial disease by 67% and the odds of heart disease and
stroke by 69% and 56%, respectively. The risk of these problems
also increased as the amount and duration of secondhand
smoke rose.

Education Needed on
Osteoporosis-Fracture Risk

A large, global survey showed that more than half of women
with osteoporosis do not believe they are at a higher risk for
experiencing a fracture, an issue of concern and frustration for
the international research team.

"Despite the fact that awareness of osteoporosis itself has
increased lately, many of these women just don't get it. Not just
in the United States, but all over the world," said study coauthor
Ethel S. Siris, MD.

The study involved >60,000 noninstutionalized women over
the age of 55 who had visited their primary health care physician
in the 2 years leading up to the study at 1 of 17 health care facilities
in 10 countries. At the time of the study, a little more than
11,000 women had osteoporosis. The study results showed that
55% of women diagnosed with the bone-weakening disease did
not believe they ran a higher risk of fractures, compared with
women without the disease.

Weight Does Not Impede
Sexual Activity

A high body mass index (BMI), indicating that a woman is overweight
or obese, may not play a major role in her sexual activity,
according to a study reported in Obstetrics and Gynecology
(September 2008). The findings are based on surveys from
6690 women, 15 to 44 years old, who participated in the 2002
National Survey of Family Growth.

Overall, 54% of the women were of normal body weight (BMI
<25). Of the remaining participants, 25% were overweight (BMI
between 25 and 30) and 21% were considered obese (BMI >30).
The researchers found no considerable differences among the
weight groups in sexual orientation, sexual intercourse frequency,
age at first intercourse, the number or lifetime male partners,
or the number of male partners in the previous year. The
investigators recommend further research into the link between
BMI and women's sexual behavior because it can affect the risk
of unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.

F A S T F A C T: At least 1 in 4 US women experiences a pelvic floor disorder.